The '''Battle Frontier''' (Japanese: '''バトルフロンティア''' ''Battle Frontier'') is a special post-League area in {{game|Emerald}} that features several arenas where powerful Trainers can {{pkmn|battle}} each other.

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The '''Battle Frontier''' (Japanese: '''バトルフロンティア''' ''Battle Frontier'') is a special post-[[Pokémon League|League]] area in {{game|Emerald}} that features several arenas where powerful [[Trainers]] can {{pkmn|battle}} each other.

The Battle Frontier replaces the {{ho|Battle Tower}} in its location south of {{rt|130|Hoenn}}, and likewise is only accessible by taking the [[S.S. Tidal]] from [[Lilycove City]] or [[Slateport City]]. Unlike the plain Battle Tower in {{game|Ruby and Sapphire|s}}, as well, each of the facilities in the Battle Frontier has a leader, the [[Frontier Brain]], who may be challenged after certain {{wp|winning streak (sports)|winning streaks}} have been made through their respective facilities.

The Battle Frontier replaces the {{ho|Battle Tower}} in its location south of {{rt|130|Hoenn}}, and likewise is only accessible by taking the [[S.S. Tidal]] from [[Lilycove City]] or [[Slateport City]]. Unlike the plain Battle Tower in {{game|Ruby and Sapphire|s}}, as well, each of the facilities in the Battle Frontier has a leader, the [[Frontier Brain]], who may be challenged after certain {{wp|winning streak (sports)|winning streaks}} have been made through their respective facilities.

In the anime, this Battle Frontier, rather than being on one of Hoenn's many small islands, is spread across the Kanto region, presumably so as to reflect on the then-recent releases of Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen as well as Emerald. Much like the Gyms do not have a requirement that Ash beats anyone besides the Gym Leader, Ash is not required to compete in any matches besides those against the Frontier Brain.

In either canon, the Battle Frontier is owned and operated by Scott, who meets up with the player throughout the game in Emerald, and met up with Ash in The Scheme Team.

Items

Overview

In-game view of the Battle Frontier

Upon the player's first entry into Hoenn's Battle Frontier, their Trainer Card will be upgraded into a Frontier Pass by a woman at the entrance. This pass holds the Trainer Card, as well as a small map of the Battle Frontier and the player's records with the Frontier. Saved-up Battle Points, or BP, are listed, as are any of the seven Frontier Symbols the player has won. One battle from within one of the facilities may be recorded and stored on the Frontier Pass, which may be watched or overwritten with another at any time.

On winning through a set amount of battles in any given facility, Battle Points will be awarded, usually in small amounts, but gradually growing through each consecutive streak. Defeating the Frontier Brain of a given facility for the first time awards the silver Symbol of that facility, as well as 20BP, while the second defeat of the same Brain gives the Symbol a golden color and the player another 20BP. The Frontier Brain will only appear in 3-vs-3 single battle mode.

No two Pokémon entered can hold the same item, though all items are allowed to be held (even if they would have no particular reason for being held). Items cannot be used from the Bag during battle. Battles conducted here do not award experience or money. Any Pokémon can be entered for battle, except for the following Pokémon:

Returning from Pokémon Ruby and Sapphire, the Battle Tower (Japanese: バトルタワーBattle Tower) is the most standard of the facilities. Like before, it features a standard 3-vs-3 single or 4-vs-4 Double Battle format, with straight runs of 7 Trainers that get progressively more powerful as the player goes on.

At the 35th and 70th battle, five and ten runs through, respectively, Salon Maiden Anabel, the Frontier Brain, appears. If she is defeated, she awards the Ability Symbol.

All multiplayer functions found in Ruby and Sapphire are retained, as well. For a detailed description of these, see Battle Tower (Hoenn). Through a glitch, players may exploit the Battle Tower in Emerald to clone their Pokémon.

In the anime

In the anime, the Battle Tower was the sixth of the facilities Ash challenged, in the episodes Talking a Good Game! and Second Time's the Charm!. After losing the first match, Ash redoubled his efforts and rechallenged Anabel, resulting in a win. This version of the Battle Tower is near Tohjo Falls.

In the Battle Palace (Japanese: バトルパレスBattle Palace), Pokémon battle on their own, without any commands from their Trainers. This is very similar to the rules at the VerdanturfBattle Tent. The style of the Pokémon's battle depends on its Nature, and this style may change when the Pokémon's HP falls low.

At a streak of 21 (three trips through) or 42 (six trips through), Palace Maven Spenser challenges the player. If defeated, he awards the Spirits Symbol.

The Battle Factory (Japanese: バトルファクトリーBattle Factory) is more dedicated to research than the other facilities, and the subject of the scientists' research is the abilities of Trainers when using rental Pokémon in battle. Before the player begins a battle, they will be told some information about the opponent's team, and may switch one of the Pokémon they have with them with one of the Pokémon used by the Trainer they just defeated. This is just like the Battle Tent in Slateport City.

At the 21st and 42nd battle in a streak, three and six times through the Battle Factory, Factory Head Noland will challenge the player to a battle. Like all other Trainers in the facility, including the player, his Pokémon are completely random, and so cannot be known until he is encountered. If he is defeated, he awards the Knowledge Symbol.

Battle style

Trainers are divided into 9 different battle styles, based on the number of moves in 7 different categories. They are as follows:

A move may be counted more than once. Any attack not in any of the categories is not considered.

Three moves from a category is needed to meet the criteria for the first three categories, while only two moves are needed to meet the criteria for the last four. If there are no categories meeting the criteria, then the battle style "appears to be free-spirited and unrestrained." If there are at least three categories meeting the criteria, the battle style "appears to be flexibly adaptable to the situation." If exactly one category is matched, the battle styles are as follows:

Category

Battle Style

1

"appears to be one based on total preparation"

2

"appears to be slow and steady"

3

"appears to be one of endurance"

4

"appears to be high risk, high return"

5

"appears to be weakening the foe to start"

6

"appears to be impossible to predict"

7

"appears to depend on the battle's flow"

If exactly two categories meet the criteria, then the battle style is the one that appears furthest down the list above.

In the anime

In the anime, the Battle Factory is located near Cerulean City, and was the first facility challenged by Ash. It appeared in the episodes Numero Uno Articuno and The Symbol Life. The Frontier Brain Noland allows the challenger to choose one of his Pokémon for him to use in a one-on-one battle. According to Scott, he suggested that a sky roof would be added so that Flying-types could use their full potential.

The Battle Pyramid (Japanese: バトルピラミッドBattle Pyramid) is a 7-layer pyramid. Each level is shrouded in darkness, and can only be lit up by defeating opponents on the level. Trainers cannot take any items into the pyramid, and items found within can only be used while inside, being stored in a special item bag that is handed out to those who challenge it.

Wild Pokémon are encountered within the Battle Pyramid, with strategies differing depending on how many floors the player has ventured through. The tactics used by the wild Pokémon will progress as follows:

After passing through 21 floors (three passes through) and 70 floors (ten passes), Pyramid King Brandon appears at the top to challenge the player. If he is defeated, he awards the Brave Symbol.

The Battle Pyramid flying in the anime

In the anime

In the anime, the Battle Pyramid was located near Pewter City, but has hovercraft-like turbines installed in its underside, thus giving it the ability to move around anywhere. The location of the Battle Pyramid is only revealed to those who have defeated the other six Frontier Brains, and so it was the seventh and final facility challenged by Ash, between Battling the Enemy Within! and Pace - The Final Frontier!.

The Battle Dome (Japanese: バトルドームBattle Dome) is a tournament between 16 Trainers.

Before each battle, the player can find out about their opponent, such as the Pokémon they use, their battle style, and how they train. Competitors can find out who was eliminated in each round by looking at the tournament bracket.

After the player has won five and ten championships, Dome Ace Tucker will challenge him or her. On his defeat, he awards the Tactics Symbol.

Seeding

The tournament bracket is organized as follows:

Left Bracket: 1 vs 9, 13 vs 5, 8 vs 16, 12 vs 4

Right Bracket: 3 vs 11, 15 vs 7, 6 vs 14, 10 vs 2

Seedings are determined by their ranking: the sum of the combined base stat totals of all Pokémon, plus 1/20 of the product of the number of different types represented by the Pokémon and the highest level among the Pokémon. If two Trainers tie in ranking, the higher internal Trainer number will win the tiebreaker; the player will always win the tiebreaker against any CPU Trainer, while Dome Ace Tucker will win any tiebreaker against other CPU Trainers. In the event of a tie battle, the higher seed advances and the lower seed is eliminated.

Battle Style

The battle style of a Trainer is solely determined by the effort values of all of the Trainer's Pokémon. A stat is considered to be emphasized if it makes up at least 30% of the team's EVs (taking Nature into account: for this calculation, EVs on a Pokémon with a beneficial Nature are worth 10% more, while EVs on a hindering Nature are worth 10% less), and neglected if there are no EVs in that stat among the entered Pokémon.

If there any emphasized stats, they are shown (if there are three emphasized stats, only two are shown). Otherwise, if there are any neglected stats, they are shown (if there are more than two, only two are shown; the ones that are shown are further influenced by the number of entered Pokémon having a hindering Nature in the particular stat). Otherwise, the Trainer is said to "raise Pokémon in a well-balanced way."

CPU Battles

Note that the game does not simulate battles between two CPU Trainers. Instead, the outcome between two CPU Trainers is broken down as follows: each Trainer is scored based upon the sum of the following:

The type affinity of damaging attacks: each attack dealing damage on the team is compared against each Pokémon on the opposing team. 4 points are awarded if the attack is normally effective, 12 if super-effective, and 20 if 4× super-effective. No points are awarded if the attack is resisted. 8 points are deducted if the attack is 4× resisted, and 16 points are deducted if the attack is ineffective. For the purposes of calculating this, Ground-type attacks are considered to be neutral against Pokémon with Levitate. Against Pokémon with Wonder Guard, type matchups that are not super-effective do not award nor deduct points.

The sum of the base stats of all Pokémon, divided by 10

The seeding of the Trainer, minus 1

A random value from 0 to 31

The Trainer with the higher score advances; if this is a tie, then the higher-seeded Trainer advances. During tournaments in which he may be challenged by the player, Tucker always appears as the #2 seeded contestant, and will always win his battles against CPU opponents.

CPU Pokémon Selection

To determine the Pokémon sent out by a CPU Trainer against the player, each of the CPU Trainer's three Pokémon is given a score. There are two scoring methods, which are chosen at random: the offensive method and defensive method. Both methods compare the type affinity of the Pokémon's damaging attacks against each of the three Pokémon on the player's team. In the offensive method, 2 points are awarded if the attack is normally effective, 4 if super-effective, and 8 if 4× super-effective. In the defensive method, 2 points are awarded if the attack is resisted, 4 if 4× resisted, and 8 if ineffective. 2 points are deducted if super-effective, and 4 are deducted if 4× super-effective. No points are awarded or deducted in any other scenario. For the purposes of this calculation, type matchups that are not super-effective against Pokémon with Wonder Guard are ignored (no points are awarded or deducted), and Ground-type attacks are considered to be neutral against Pokémon with Levitate.

If all three Pokémon tie in one method, the other method is used. If all three Pokémon tie in the second method, then two Pokémon and the order they appear are chosen at random. Otherwise, the two highest-scoring Pokémon is chosen (if there is a tie for the second selection, the second selection of Pokémon is chosen at random). There is a 40% chance that the CPU Trainer will lead off with the higher-scoring Pokémon, and a 60% chance of leading off with the lower-scoring Pokémon.

Battle Arena

The Battle Arena (Japanese: バトルアリーナBattle Arena) pits two Pokémon against one another for three rounds. If both Pokémon last all three rounds, they are rated on how they battled in three aspects, and the Pokémon with the higher score wins, and the losing Pokémon leaves battle. If they somehow tie, both Pokémon leave battle. A knockout results in an automatic win for the Pokémon that is still standing.

Pokémon are scored on their mind, skill, and body. This is much like the Fallarbor TownBattle Tent rules. The Pokémon with the better rating in each category scores two points, while a tie will award one point to each Pokémon.

Mind judges Pokémon on their offensive style. One point is awarded if an attack that deals damage is chosen for use (except Counter, Mirror Coat, and Bide, which do not award points, and Fake Out, which deducts one point), and one point is deducted if Protect, Detect, or Endure was chosen. All other moves do not award points. The Pokémon with the higher number of points wins the two points in the overall judgment.

Skill judges Pokémon on accuracy. One point is awarded if an attack lands successfully, while two points are deducted if it does not, unless it was caused by Protect, Detect, Endure, or Fake Out, in which no points are deducted. The Pokémon with the higher number of points wins the two points in the overall judgment.

Body judges the amount of HP remaining at the end of the third round compared to their amount at the start of the first. The Pokémon with the better ratio wins the two points in the overall judgment.

The Battle Arena is a series of single challenges, rather than a forced streak of some amount, and so after 28 wins and 56 wins, Arena Tycoon Greta appears to challenge the player. On her defeat, she awards the player with the Guts Symbol.

In the anime

In the anime, Ash challenged the Battle Arena, located near Saffron City, as his second facility, in Wheel of Frontier!. Before the match begins, a special machine is used to determine if the match is 1-vs-1, 2-vs-2, or 3-vs-3.

Battle Pike

The Battle Pike (Japanese: バトルチューブBattle Tube) is a long pike in the design of a Seviper. Inside of it are 21 rooms, in seven sets of three. The player may choose any of the three in a set to continue through, and in each of the three, any of the following eight events may occur:

Single battle: The Trainer walks up to the player and battles.

Double battle: Two Trainers walk up to the player and battle.

Single battle and healing: 3 Pokémon per side; winner's Pokémon are completely healed.

One or two recovery: One or two of the player's Pokémon will be healed.

Full recovery: All of the player's Pokémon will be healed.

The lady standing outside of the rooms will hint at what is in one of the three rooms. Each quote has two possibilities, but the first is more common than the second.

Quote

Result 1

Result 2

For some odd reason, I felt a waveof nostalgia coming from it...

Status ailment

Heals one or two Pokémon

Is it...A Trainer?I sense the presence of people...

Single battle

Heals all Pokémon

It seems to have the distinct aromaof Pokémon wafting around it...

Wild Pokémon

Single battle, then heal party

I seem to have heard something...It may have been whispering...

Idle NPC

Double battle

From every path I sense a dreadfulpresence...

Battle Pike Queen Lucy

The Frontier Brain of the Battle Pike is Pike Queen Lucy. She challenges Trainers who complete 27 rooms (two passes through the pike) and 139 rooms (10 passes). By beating her, one is awarded with the Luck Symbol.

Gallery

Other points of interest

Artisan Cave

The Artisan Cave is a long cave connecting one end of the Battle Frontier to the other. It starts near the Battle Palace and the exit is right next to the Battle Tower. The only wild Pokémon found inside is Smeargle.

House

There is a house next to the Battle Tower. Inside, there is a Trainer who wants to trade a Meowth for a Skitty.

Record Hall

The record hall contains all of the records that the player has set at the Battle Frontier. There are three rooms. The one on the left contains records for the Battle Pike, Dome, and Factory, the one in the center has records for the Battle Tower, and the one on the right contains records for the Battle Palace, Pyramid, and Arena.

If the player mixes records with another Emerald game, Battle Frontier records will be copied over from the other game and compared.

Sudowoodo

A level 40 Sudowoodo is located in the southeast section of the Battle Frontier. Much like in Generation II, NPCs will talk about it as a tree. However, when the player uses the Wailmer Pail on it, it will spring to life. This is the only location of Sudowoodo in the handheld games of Generation III.

Betting man

In the house south of the Battle Pyramid a man can be visited. After receiving at least 3 silver Symbols, he will ask the player to compete in a random facility. The player can give him 5, 10, or 15 Battle Points. If the player wins, the man will give him back twice the amount the player gave him. If the player loses, the Battle Points are lost.

Stats judge

In the house above the Pokémon Center is an old man who can judge one of the player's Pokémon's stats. He examines the Pokémon's IVs and gives feedback on how high or low they are. First he describes the Pokémon's "ability", which is based on the sum of all six of its IVs. Then he indicates which stat has the highest IV and what range it falls in. If 2 or more IVs are tied for the highest then he will choose one randomly.

Pokémon's ability

IV total

Average

0 to 90

Better-than-average

91 to 120

Quite impressive

121 to 150

Wonderfully outstanding

151 to 186

Highest IV

Range

Relatively good

0 to 15

Quite impressive

16 to 25

Outstanding

26 to 30

Flawless

31

Move Tutors

In a house next to the Battle Dome, there are two Move Tutors. They will teach a Pokémon a selection of attacks for a price in Battle Points.

Battle Point Exchange Service Corner

The Battle Point Exchange Service Corner, or simply the Exchange Service Corner, sells various goods in exchange for Battle Points earned at other parts of the Battle Frontier. Players can purchase goods for their secret base, vitamins, and items that can be held by a Pokémon.

In the manga

In the Pokémon Adventures manga

In the sixth chapter of the Pokémon Adventures manga, a Trainer named Emerald arrives at the Battle Frontier, where he accidentally interferes in the opening ceremonies and gains the second challenge of clearing the seven Facilities by defeating the Frontier Brains within that time. During this time, Emerald befriends Todd Snap and discovers that the masked Guile Hideout is seeking Jirachi for evil purposes after finding out that an overleveled Sceptile, which later became his, was in the Battle Factory. Now learning of this, he also seeks to stop Guile Hideout from achieving his goal, a task easier said then done.

In the Pokémon Battle Frontier manga

The Pokémon Battle Frontier manga features a boy named Enta being invited to the Battle Frontier by Scott. Once there, he is tutored by Rald and begins to challenge the Frontier Brains.

The manga concludes with Enta's battle with Anabel. Despite Enta's challenge of the Frontier Brains being a major focus, Noland, Greta and Brandon don't appear within the actual series, only appearing on the title page of the fourth chapter.

In the TCG

Trivia

A girl inside the Battle Pike says "I've completed the challenge 10 times now, but I've never had to battle a Trainer once." This information would be false, because after two straight wins and again at ten straight wins, she would have to battle Lucy. However, it should be noted that she did not state whether or not she beat the Battle Pike ten times in a row, so this might not necessarily be an error.

If, by cheating, players enter through the Battle Palace's Single Battle Halls, the game will then randomly choose Lv. 50 or Open Level, and they will be able to battle Trainers with all six Pokémon they have in their party. When they battle the second Trainer, only the first three Pokémon in their party may be used, and their only move will be Sketch.

All enemy Trainers in the Battle Frontier, except the Frontier Brains, greet the player character before battle with a string of six preset words, phrases, or characters from the easy chat system. After the battle, the enemy gives out another message of the same format which depends on whether they've won or lost. This is also the case for all enemies in the Battle Tents or Trainer Hill.

However, this is not the case for the greetings of any Apprentices that have been mentored by the player or other individuals. When greeting the player prior to battling in the Battle Tower, the Apprentice will typically state the name of his or her mentor, as well as his or her numerical position in the line of all Apprentices tutored by someone (such as being the 7th apprentice tutored by the player).

Messages are also altered for enemy Trainers present within the Battle Pyramid. After a battle, they provide the player with contextual hints on certain aspects of the challenge, such as the location of a given floor's exit, the number of remaining Trainers to be fought on a floor, or the number of remaining items on a given floor.